Your Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) begins here
Welcome to Carrington Dean – Scotland’s debt specialists.
You’ve taken the first step to making positive changes to your financial future, now let’s look at what’s next in your DAS journey.
Sign your proposal
First things first, we’ll send your Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) proposal via email. It’s important that you review this carefully as it will explain the details of the Debt Payment Programme (DPP).
The DPP will state how much you’ll pay each month and how long the arrangement will last.
Remember, when you have a DPP in place creditors can’t ask you for money, take you to court, apply to make you bankrupt or add additional interest fees, or charges, on what you owe, so it’s important to sign your proposal as soon as possible.
Set up a card payment
Next, we’ll set up a recurring card payment, or RCP, ahead of future payments.
A RCP isn’t the same as a standing order or Direct Debit, which use your current account details such as an account number and sort code. Instead, we’ll use your card information to take payments.
Recurring card payments are often used for things such as streaming subscriptions (like Netflix or Amazon Prime) or insurance policies.
Once set up, you’ll see the recurring payments on your statement as normal card transactions.
It’s important to be aware that we’ll be unable to proceed with your application at this point without a RCP on file.
Confirming balances
We’ll also write to your creditors, the people and companies you owe money to, to confirm the balance owed.
This will allow us to tailor your DPP to ensure your monthly repayments are affordable.
You should know this process can take up to three weeks but don’t worry, we’ll take care of everything for you.
Proposal sent for approval
Then, we’ll send your proposal to the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB). The AiB is responsible for running the DAS so will need oversight of your payment programme.
The proposal will also go to your creditors, asking them to agree to the payment programme.
If your creditors agree or don’t reply within three weeks, your application will automatically be approved. If some disagree, the AiB will decide whether to approve the DPP anyway.
Don’t worry if we go a little quiet during this time, we’ll be in touch as soon as we have any updates.
Following the decisions
If your application is approved we’ll get in touch with the good news and confirm the details of your DPP. We’ll also set up your first payment which must be made within 42 days of the DPP being approved. In the event that your proposal is rejected, you’ll still have protection from your creditors for two weeks. During this time we’ll talk you through what options you have, including appealing the decision through the AiB, applying for a new DPP or looking at alternative debt solutions.Frequently Asked Questions
When your debt solution is all set up, the fees to cover your DAS will be taken from the monthly amount you pay to your creditors. Don’t worry – that fee is included in the monthly amount that’s been proposed. Everything’s covered by that figure, and we won’t take any money from you upfront.
Until you sign your proposal and the DPP is approved your creditors are still allowed to contact you. Once your DPP is in place, you’ll be legally protected from them getting in touch.
The DAS offers the opportunity to repay your debts through the DPP in a reasonable time. While there’s no definitive answer to what a reasonable time could mean, the AiB will decide whether the proposed length of time for repayments is reasonable when considering your application. However, typically people complete their arrangement within 10 years.
If a friend or family member has offered to pay off your debt for you, we can still help. We’ll make a ‘full and final settlement offer’ on your behalf. This will allow you to pay a lump sum to all your creditors.
